Football fans’ hearts went out to David Silva on Wednesday after he revealed the heartbreaking reason he’s been missing from Manchester City matches in recent weeks.The Spaniard wrote an official statement that read: “I want to thank all of you for the love and good wishes received in the last few weeks, special thanks to my team mates, the manager and all at the club for understanding my situation. Also I want to share with you the birth of my son Mateo, who was born extremely preterm and is fighting day by day with the help of the medical team.”Let’s pray that little Mateo pulls through.

But it seems he’s got the perfect manager in Pep Guardiola.

Guardiola insisted that family comes first and is happy to allow Silva to miss more matches in the coming weeks.

GUARDIOLA SPEAKS ABOUT SILVA'S NEWS

"Family is most important," the City manager said.

"You can see how essential David is to us, but I don't know how long he will be here. He is free to go [home] again if he needs to. It doesn't matter if we get no points while he is away. Family is most important."

But after Silva shared the sad news, social media was full of football fans and pundits paying tribute to the world-class midfielder and wishing him all the best.

The 31-year-old has been magnificent for City since signing in the summer of 2010 and has been pivotal in their unbeaten league run this campaign. Not only that, he also comes across as a great guy.

And despite being a former Manchester United player, Gary Neville has paid a beautiful tribute to the City player.

GARY NEVILLE'S TWEET ON DAVID SILVA

On Wednesday afternoon, Neville tweeted: “I can’t think of many players from a rival club that have been a credit to the game on and off the pitch as much as David Silva. Immersed himself in the city, never complains, always plays and performs brilliantly.”

Well said.

FOOTBALL FANS AGREE WITH NEVILLE

And it’s fair to say football fans completely agree with him. Just look at some of the replies to Neville’s tweet:

City will no doubt miss Silva in each match that he’s absent but everyone is wishing him and his family all the best.